Judd Apatow to Write and Direct 'Knocked Up' Spinoff

The cat is finally out of the bag regarding the next project Judd Apatow plans to write and direct, and according to Variety he's going back for seconds. Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann will reprise their roles from Apatow's 2007 comedy 'Knocked Up' for an untitled comedy due out on June 1, 2012. Story is under wraps as of now, and there's no word whether Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl will also play roles in the film, which, based on the little amount of info we have, seems like it'll be squarely focused on Rudd and Mann's dysfunctional (yet hilarious) marriage. (Update: Universal has clarified that this will be an original story featuring the characters Rudd and Mann created in 'Knocked Up', which sounds exactly like what they did with 2010's 'Get Him to the Greek.')

We also don't know whether Apatow will bring back his two kids to reprise their roles as the kids in 'Knocked Up,' but it's interesting to see the writer-director -- who's branched out to produce a number of original, female-centric comedies as of late -- returning to characters he created in another film. Not that we're complaining; Rudd and Mann's sidestory in 'Knocked Up' helped provide some of the film's funniest moments. Plus the film took in upwards of $219 million, which made it the highest grossing film that Apatow directed, and the one most worthy of revisiting.

What do you think? Is this a smart move for Apatow's next film? Do you want to see a film that features the same characters from 'Knocked Up', or would you rather see the man create another original comedy with all new characters?